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New muni opens in DL Monday

After a lot of time spent planning, building, stocking and preparing, the new Lakes Liquors is opening its doors on Monday.

Detroit Lakes' $1.8 million municipal liquor store is bright, full of light and ready for customers.

"It's exactly what we were looking for," Manager Brad MacMaster said. "It's everything we imagined, and it's turned out nice."

The center shelving is low -- about four feet high -- so that when someone walks into the building, they can see the entire store. Shelves line the walls, and windows bring natural light into the spacious building.

Besides the brightness of the new store, the efficiency brings a brightness of its own.

Items that used to take two hours for delivery and stocking now take 15-20 minutes, MacMaster said. When trucks drop off beer, it is put either in the coolers where it's displayed, or in the beer cave at the center of the cooler area.

"It's like we're moving into the next century," he said.

With much more space than the former building located under city hall, MacMaster now has the opportunity to order more variety for the store. He said there are more sizes of bottles and more products.

He's already input 300 new items and has 500 more to do.

"I don't think we'll run out of anything on Monday, but we'd be happy to because we can order more," he said.

MacMaster and his staff have been working at both of the stores the last couple weeks, selling at the old store while stocking up the new one. The old store closed after sales on Saturday, and all business will be out of the new store as of Monday.

It's been a long process to get to this point, he said, but the day is finally here.

"Everyone involved has done a nice job."

MacMaster has several events happening at the new liquor store.

After the initial opening on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday there will be a wine tasting in the afternoon, and on Nov. 26, as part of the Light Up the Lakes event in town, there will be an open house at the liquor store. There will be hot cider and some wine tasting. That Friday, there will be a beer tasting as well.

Dec. 6 will be the grand opening event with tastings and door prizes. The grand opening will last all week with various activities, and then there will be more specials around Christmas.